All you need is love and a good cup of coffee.

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Month: March 2014

We recently moved to a new town in North Dakota, Spring of 2013. It was exciting- new places to go and all new people to meet, and at the same time we were both a little nervous. We spent a few Friday and Saturdays just driving around and getting accustomed to where things were. We wandered inside, as well as outside the city limits just to see all of its views, surroundings, and offerings.

We didn’t know exactly where we would go, or where we would end up, but it was an adventure. We went on all roads from highways to minimum maintenance roads, just to see where it would take us. We preferred the country to the city, and that’s probably why we now live where we do.

I believe great things happen when you do something abnormal to your normal. You learn more about yourself when you are put in situations where you have never been. You rely on others, and in return grow into a better you. How good does it feel when you conquer something all by yourself, or in our case- as a team. It feels great!

That’s what we have done. We moved to a place where we didn’t know anyone. And slowly but surely we gained our footings. And it feels great to have accomplished all we have in just under a year. Here has become our Home, for the time being that is. We may wander again later.

I took my dog to the V-E-T today. That’s how we talk now. It goes the same for, W-A-L-K or car R-I-D-E, and I think he is catching on to those as well. Anyways, he weighed in at 43.5lbs for a 4.5 month old yellow lab. We are getting BIG, where did my puppy go!? We were finally able to stay still -with the help of a tasty treat just out of nose reach- while the scale calculated his new weight. I was pretty proud.

After the V-E-T, we headed on over to the BarkPark. (He still doesn’t know that one yet!) Although we were all alone for most of the time, we still managed to enjoy ourselves. As I threw the ball and watched Kota run after it (thank you fetch-it) I couldn’t help but remember when I was nervous about getting a dog in the first place. I mean, isn’t everyone? Your getting a new member of the family, and what happens if you realize that your not a dog person!?

I was so afraid of that. I was afraid that the lifestyle that the dog would need would interfere with the lifestyle that I wanted to live. It’s been a bit of an adjustment once we got Kota. Everything takes just a bit longer, floors don’t stay clean for nearly as long, and there is hair everywhere. At the same time this adjustment has been so good. He keeps us moving; we no longer purge on a Netflix series. We get up and we go!

Being that we are 4 and a half months old, I think we hit some milestones. We are past the infatuation with the toilet paper. We are over the humping phase (halleluiah). And, do I dare jinx myself and say that we have learned what are doggie toys and what are not. Welp-I just did it..

While I can make a very long list about the things that we are still going through-such as, the love of the cat box, the cat itself, attacking the broom/vacuum while trying to clean, working on not jumping up on people, I think I will just make light on the fact that at 4.5 months old, I have a really well tempered dog whose face just melts my heart, and that I really do love. And whose really going to remember if I had clean or dirty floors?

Were you nervous to get your pet? What were some things that you had to get accustom to once you brought them home?

You know when you hear an old song on the radio and it instantly takes you back to a specific time and place. You can remember every little detail; where you were, who you were with. For me the word -linger- took me back to when I was a kid at summer camp.

It was one of those moments that you knew that you were exactly where you were suppose to be at that particular time in your life. God placed me there, and it was perfect. I didn’t want to end.

That’s what this prompt did to me; like a song on a radio. Took me back in time.

Here’s the song. Have you heard it?

Hmmm, I want to linger.
Hmmm, A little longer.
Hmmm, A little longer,
Here with you.

Hmmm, It’s such a perfect night.
Hmmm, It doesn’t seem quite right.
Hmmm, That this should be,
My last with you.

Not much coffee is being drank by myself lately. Zero cups in 6 days–to be exact. Not that I’m counting.

Yes- that is one of the few things that this Lent season has brought forth; or more appropriately, removed.

My morning ritual is similar to everyone else’s- wake up, let the dog out, turn on the keurig, and inhale all that deliciousness bundled up into that cup.

It has been going better than I expected. Even this past weekend, when I knew hubby was going to be able to drink his. I was preparing for a weak, moody, and coffee deprived version of myself. Which I have seen a few times in the past few days, but I don’t know if I can blame that entirely on not having my morning coffee.
To be fair, I did replace my morning cup of joe with other stand-ins; such as OJ, Milk, and Tea.

Coffee isn’t necessarily the biggest and best thing that a person can give up, however it is what spoke to me when I was reading an article about Lent. And let me tell you, I kept reading that long list to see if anything else would speak to me, because I did not want to give up my morning coffee. As that day went on, I knew that if I chose to fast on something else, I would be cheating the system, because it would be something easier to go without. Something not as substantial as the relationship between myself and coffee, and the relationship is very real.

Biblical fasting is a withholding of things – good things – that have taken a too-important role in our lives. -SheReadsTruth

As you can see, I love coffee. So much, that it’s in the title of my blog. But, I love God more. And I want to show him that. That is why I decided to give up coffee for lent. Not because coffee takes away my time from the Lord (quite the opposite), but because every morning I can refocus the importance back on God. So He can make me strong, not weak. So He can remove the moody attitude, and fill my heart with joy and peace. So that He can be the caffeine that I crave.

I think the greatest thing about fasting is that every time you want to have that can of pop, box of candy, -or cup of coffee- is that you are reminded why. Why are you doing this? Why are you fasting? And how unsubstantial it really is in the big scheme of what God gave up for us. For me, every morning I am reminded of why I can’t have my cup of coffee, it isn’t a whine, it is more of a thank you to God for the amazing things He had to do, to get me here.